Funeral rituals among the Basotho : a study of the encounter between Christianity and Basotho traditional religion

Abstract:

As African Christians, searching to understand the integration between one's Christian faith and the African traditional belief system, one is struck by the fact that Christianity has not yet integrated African religious belief systems in its faith practices. Having visited Lesotho the author observed problems among the Catholics regarding the issue of inculturation. There is a lot of disagreement among the Basotho Catholics on what should be incorporated from their traditional religion into the Catholic faith. In other words, becoming a Catholic in Lesotho has come to mean a rejection of one's traditional religious belief systems. <br><br> The study of this particular phenomenon was motivated by the conflicts among the Basotho Catholics around the issue of inculturation during the celebration of Mass in some churches in Lesotho. Having read the works of Manyeli (1992) and Thabang Moloi (1995) the author became increasingly aware that the conflict originated from the fact that Christianity came to Lesotho as it did to other parts of Africa, when it was already embedded in Western cultural patterns of thought. The author also felt that the question of Christianity's cultural identification with the West needs to be dealt with by initiating a dialogue between Christian belief systems and African traditional belief systems. It is mainly for this reason that the issue of funeral practices in Lesotho was investigated within the realm of the current theological inculturation discourse. <br><br> While the Catholic Church in Lesotho has been conservative when it comes to the question of inculturation in it liturgical practices, the funeral ritual is practiced according to Basotho traditional belief systems. It is mainly for this reason that the author believes that the investigation of the funeral rituals among the Basotho people can be the starting point for further theological reflection on inculturation in the Catholic Church with specific reference to Basotho Catholics.